TWO goals in two minutes completed a comeback win for Largs Thistle in their final pre-season friendly match on Saturday.
The 3-1 win over Petershill at Barrfields made it five wins from five friendly fixtures and ensures Stuart Davidson's men are in fine fettle ahead of the big West of Scotland Football League kick-off this weekend.
But Thistle had to work hard to secure the victory against their Glasgow opponents, who took the lead just before the hour mark in torrential rain.
Top scorer Will Sewell was like a ray of sunshine coming off the bench with a quick-fire double, both set up by Jamie Martin, in a whirlwind turnaround before Blair Devine added a third to round off the win.
The victory, following on from defeats of Port Glasgow, Maryhill, Broomhill and Kilbirnie Ladeside, sets up Davidson's squad nicely for their opening Premier League salvo, with fixtures coming up against Johnstone Burgh, Cumnock and Hurlford in the first eight days of the league campaign.
The Glasgow side had made life tough for Largs in the first half and had actually rocketed an early effort off the bar following a corner kick.
Thistle also hit the bar midway through the first half, with a trialist's header coming off the woodwork following good work from Jamie Martin on the left wing.
The Barrfields side claimed for a penalty after Cole Ojungu fell to the ground under a challenge, but the referee waved play on in the face of furious protests from the Largs faithful.
Lewis Davidson also went close for the hosts, with a deflected strike flashing wide of the post before half-time.
And Largs were given work to do 13 minutes after the restart when a short passback to their trialist goalkeeper let Mark Smith nip in from the left to slide home the opener and give Petershill a surprise lead.
Davidson reacted to the loss of the opening goal by making a raft of substitutions, with Sewell among the players coming off the bench...and the changes, Sewell's introduction in particular, made an immediate impact.
Within moments of his introduction, Jamie Martin threaded the ball around the Petershill defence to find Sewell bursting clear, and last season's top scorer showed excellent composure as he despatched a clinical finish into the bottom right corner to level the scorers.
And the visitors barely had time to settle from the restart when they were undone by the very same combination, with Martin this time winning possession and powering down the right wing before sliding the ball in for Sewell to add his and his team's second with an expert finish at the near post.
The quick-fire double changed the game completely, with Thistle pouring forward against the under-pressure Petershill defence in search of a third; Devine headed over from substitute Ryan Deas' deep cross, before Deas tried his luck with an audacious cross-cum-shot.
The effort itself went well wide of target, but it indicated Thistle's attacking intent and prowess - and Deas was again in the thick of it, flicking a free kick to Sewell who came close to completing a hat-trick.
Watch a video clip of Will Sewell's goal to put Largs 2-1 up below
But the third goal wasn't too long in coming - and Sewell showed the unselfish side to his own game on 79 minutes when he raced through on the right before teeing the ball up for Devine to thump it into the roof of the net.
Petershill were tough to break down, but had no answer to the combination of Martin and Sewell, who should have plenty in their locker with which to challenge opposition defences when the serious business of seeking out league points begins this weekend.
Thistle's opening Premier Division match this Saturday, July 27, is against big-spending Johnstone Burgh, managed by former Pollok and Cumnock boss Murdo MacKinnon, whose squad features big names in the shape of Kyle Lafferty and Graham Dorrans as well as a host of players who have extensive WoSFL pedigree.
LARGS: Trialist, McLeod, Devine, McMaster, Trialist, Hughes, Faulds, Martin, Trialist, Davidson, Ojungu, Subs: Sewell, Ramsay, Trialist, Cumming, Trialist, McGrath, Bradley, Trialist, McNeill.
Saturday's match against Johnstone Burgh kicks off at 2pm, and is followed by a trip to Townhead Park on Wednesday, July 31 to face Stephen Swift's new-look Cumnock side.
The opening phase of Thistle's league campaign concludes when Hurlford United visit Barrfields on Saturday, August 3.
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